Ester Adaberto (1872–1951), born Ester Nunez de Arce, was an Italian opera singer.

Ester Adaberto, from a 1910 publication.

Early life

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Ester Nunez de Arce was born in Naples, and raised in Milan. Her father was Spanish, possibly a music professional,[1] and her mother was Neapolitan.[2]

Career

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Ester Adaberto, a soprano,[3] debuted on the opera stage in 1897, in Pagliacci at the Teatro Nuovo in Mirandola. She was a member of the Castellano Opera Company and toured Eastern Europe with them. At Vilna she was shot in the arm by a jealous Russian suitor.[2]

In about 1905, she moved to the United States, and toured from coast to coast.[4] She and Nicola Zerola starred in Aida (1909) with the Italian Grand Opera Company,[5] and she sang in Il trovatore (1909)[6] at the Metropolitan Opera in New York,[7] and in Tosca (1913) in San Francisco.[8] In 1913 she traveled to Honolulu with the Lombardi Opera Company.[9][10] In 1914-1915 she was a leading dramatic soprano with the San Carlo Opera Company.[11][12] In March 1915, Adaberto was called away for a family emergency in Italy, and Alice Eversman took over her role in Aida.[13] Adaberto made four recordings.[2]

Adaberto's repertoire was said to consist of thirty operas.[1] She was described as "beautiful and charming",[4] with "a flexible voice of wide range...although at times a metallic quality detracted from the effect."[14]

Personal life

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She retired from performing in 1917, in grief after the death of her son in World War I. Adaberto died in 1951, aged 79 years, in Milan.[2]

References

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  1. ^ a b "Mme. Ester Adaberto, Dramatic Soprano" Springfield Missouri Republican (November 15, 1914): 15. via Newspapers.com  
  2. ^ a b c d "Ester Adaberto" La Voce Antica.
  3. ^ "Music" The Nation (September 17, 1908): 271.
  4. ^ a b "Mme. Ester Adaberto, Prima Donna Soprano" The Lincoln Star (December 9, 1914): 2. via Newspapers.com  
  5. ^ "Aida Will Open the Academy Season" New York Times (August 25, 1909): 9.
  6. ^ and she sangIl Trovatore Metropolitan Opera House (March 10, 1909).
  7. ^ "The Theatre" The Independent (January 22, 1910): 10.
  8. ^ "Ester Adaberto Impresses Crowd" San Francisco Call (January 31, 1913): 4. via California Digital Newspaper Collection  
  9. ^ Ferdinand J. H. Schnack, The Aloha Guide (1915): 127-128.
  10. ^ "Andrea Chenier is Musical; Adaberto and Agostini Sing Together for the First Time" Honolulu Star-Advertiser (March 19, 1913): 5. via Newspapers.com  
  11. ^ "Ester Adaberto Rescues Opera As Failure Threatens" St. Louis Post-Dispatch (November 14, 1914): 5. via Newspapers.com  
  12. ^ "New York to Open with Grand Opera" Minneapolis Star Tribune (December 20, 1914): 44. via Newspapers.com  
  13. ^ "Alice Eversman in Opera 'Aida'" The Morning News (March 17, 1915): 13. via Newspapers.com  
  14. ^ "Music Lovers Enjoy Opera" The News (November 1, 1913): 5. via Newspapers.com